Detection of anabolic androgenic steroids in serum samples

Abstract

When testing for anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) outside sports communities, for example, in healthcare and forensic medicine, urine is the matrix of choice. However, there are drawbacks with urinary sampling, and serum might be useful as a complementary matrix. The aim was to develop an LC–MS/MS method for serum measuring AAS frequently used outside of sport, including testosterone (T), steroid esters, and eight other synthetic AAS. The sample pretreatment included sample precipitation and evaporation. Limit of quantification for the AAS was 0.05–0.5 ng/mL, and linearity was 0.05–20 ng/mL for most of the substances. Generally, the within- and between-day CV results, matrix effect, and process efficiency were <15%. The AAS were stable for at least 6 months at −20°C. Serum samples were obtained from previous studies. A novel finding from an administration study was that T enanthate was present in serum even after 5 years of storage at −20°C. Serum samples from self-reporting AAS individuals, where T esters were detected, were positive for testosterone using the urinary testosterone/epitestosterone criterion >10. Of those identified as positive in traditional urinary doping tests (n = 15), AAS in serum were found in 80% of the subjects. Our results show that serum may be a valid complementary matrix to urine samples for AAS testing.